Transport Funding Promised as Education Aid Focus Shifts

High-Level Summary

Westminster Hall held two Backbench Business debates: on transport connectivity in the Midlands and North Wales, and on the International Day of Education. Members raised concerns about bus fares and reliability, rail capacity and accessibility, and specific projects including the Midlands Rail Hub and Aldridge station. The Minister outlined multi‑year devolved and local transport funding, confirmed conditional support for a proposed open‑access Wrexham–London rail service, and said the Midlands Rail Hub would progress to its next stage. In the education debate, speakers highlighted global learning losses and finance gaps, and Ministers set out a refocused aid approach prioritising foundational learning, financing in emergencies, and leveraging multilateral funds. Both debates ended with the House resolving that it had considered the subjects.

Detailed Summary

Transport Connectivity: Midlands and North Wales (Westminster Hall)

Wendy Morton linked transport directly to opportunity and argued that delivery lags promises across buses, rail and roads. She said, “Reliable transport and good connectivity are not nice-to-have extras”, urged a West Midlands youth bus fare scheme, and pressed Ministers on the Midlands Rail Hub, noting that £123 million is for development and the remainder is “subject to future funding decisions.” She criticised delays to Aldridge station and warned of “development without infrastructure.”

Contributions focused on reliability, accessibility and investment priorities. Catherine Atkinson pointed to service loss: “Derbyshire had a 60% loss of bus routes in the 15 years up to 2023.” Josh Newbury highlighted that at Rugeley Trent Valley “only platform 3… is step-free” and other platforms are reachable “only via a steep footbridge.” He said “the next allocation of funding is still several years away.” for accessibility upgrades under Access for All. Dave Robertson backed the Midlands Rail Hub, describing previous commitments as “a mythical project…” and citing potential capacity gains of “300 trains passing in and out” of Birmingham daily. Luke Taylor welcomed Northern Powerhouse Rail but cautioned that a “mere £1.1 billion commitment to spend another five years making a plan to make a plan” offers little certainty now. Greg Smith referenced analysis that “Transport is the wiring that allows urban economies to function” but outside London that wiring is “not working as it should.”

Responding, the Minister (Simon Lightwood) outlined devolved and local funding and next steps. He cited “£15.6 billion for transport for city region settlements, including nearly £2.4 billion for the region up to 2032” and said “More than £1.3 billion will be delivered across the west midlands by 2029-30”. On the Midlands Rail Hub, he said the Chancellor had “committed to progressing to the next stage of the midlands rail hub” and that it would “enable up to 300 additional trains each day” once delivered. He confirmed, “We have provided conditional support for that [WSMR] application”, set out bus support of “over £3 billion… including £700 million in local authority bus grants” and that “The west midlands alone will receive £264 million”, and said local road maintenance funding would be “over £2 billion every year… which is double what we inherited.” by 2029-30. On Aldridge station, he said the former mayor “failed to use the £1.05 billion” and that “There is £3.6 million allocated… with a report due later this year.” The motion was agreed to: “Resolved, That this House has considered transport connectivity in the Midlands and North Wales.”

International Day of Education (Westminster Hall)

Bambos Charalambous led the debate marking the UN day, urging priority for foundational learning and warning of global funding cuts. He recalled the universal right to education — “Everyone has the right to education.” — and said “achieving universal foundational learning could increase global GDP by $196 trillion over the next 20 years.” He warned, “Aid to education is projected to fall by around 24%, or $3.2 billion, globally by the end of 2026” and that cuts could push “a further 6 million children out of school”, highlighting roles for the Global Partnership for Education and Education Cannot Wait.

Members described impacts and the UK role. Sam Rushworth said, “Global education is facing cuts of £3.2 billion by the end of 2026.” Andrew Rosindell stressed soft power and said, “Funding from the Foreign Office has still not returned to pre-pandemic levels.” for the British Council. Monica Harding underlined that “more than 272 million children and young people are out of school” and that UK aid had “helped more than 15 million children attend school worldwide.” Caroline Voaden focused on girls, noting “more than 100 million girls… are not in formal education today”.

Minister Stephen Doughty acknowledged the scale of need — “272 million children are out of school globally” — and said, “We took the tough decision to reduce our official development assistance spending to 0.3% of GNI by 2027”. He outlined five priorities including education in emergencies, announced “a further £10 million for strategic partnerships on education in emergencies” and said the UK is “the largest bilateral donor to the Global Partnership for Education, £5.6 million of which is earmarked for education and psychosocial support in Gaza and the west bank”. He also highlighted a new international education strategy to grow the sector’s UK economic contribution to £40 billion by 2030, support via the International Finance Facility for Education that has “unlocked $1 billion” and leverages “$1… into $7”, and said British Council funding is “still under discussion”. The motion was agreed to: “Resolved, That this House has considered the International Day of Education.”